Era of Good Feelings

The Era of Good Feelings was a period of the political history of the United States that existed from the end of the War of 1812 in 1815 until the rise of the Second Party System in 1824. The era started as the result of feelings of victory following the war's end, and its political atmosphere was dominated by James Madison and James Monroe's Democratic-Republican Party, which dominated the country's politics after the collapse of the Federalist Party in 1815. President Monroe presided over a period of national unity, during which he sought to eliminate parties altogether from national politics. He pushed through efforts to create protective tariffs and create a national bank, and Federalists and Democratic-Republicans reconciled and learned to work together. During Madison's 1817-1818 national goodwill tour, his donning of his old Continental Army uniform, his charm, and his kindness of heart led to people across the country loving him. By 1820, every state but Massachusetts was in Democratic-Republican hands, but he was never able to fully reconcile with the Federalists, as factions within his party opposed some domestic and foreign programs of his. In the United States presidential election, 1820, Monroe was almost unanimously re-elected, and almost all Americans were Democratic-Republicans. However, intraparty rivalries, the economic panic of 1819, and the rise of Andrew Jackson in politics led to the Democratic-Republican Party losing its near-monopoly on political power in the country. The rise of Southern exceptionalism and Jacksonian nationalism led to the creation of the Democratic Party, and the Era of Good Feelings came to an end.